1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an irrigation system and the use of such system with a reservoir fluidly connected to an insertion member for insertion into a body cavity of a human being and a means for pumping liquid contained in the reservoir out through an outlet of the insertion member and into the body cavity. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a method of performing irrigation on a human body by use of the irrigation system.
An irrigation system may, for certain users, be used on a daily basis, depending on the user's need. This is for example the case for people suffering from spinal cord injuries, spinal bifida or multiple sclerosis. The system is used to improve quality of life by preventing constipation, reducing time spent for bowel emptying procedures and increasing independency.
2. Description of the Related Art
A simple system widely used, for instance at hospitals, constitutes a bag that is elevated above the person having the transanal irrigation. The bag is connected to a catheter via a tube, which is inserted through the anus into the rectum. The liquid in the bag is introduced into the person; the difference of height between the person and the bag causes a pressure difference. A drawback of this very simple system is that in order to make the system work the bag must be elevated to a position above the person in order to obtain the wanted pressure difference. In order to achieve the necessary pressure, the reservoir should typically be elevated to a height of 1.2-1.5 meters. It may be difficult to find a place in this height to hang the reservoir and for a disabled person in a wheelchair it may be impossible to reach.
Other systems are disclosed in US2006/0009732. One of the systems is designed to provide a colonic lavage with the capability of providing manually controlled pulsation to the lavage liquid through a manual pump. The manual pump can be a conventional in-line squeeze bulb. In an embodiment, a check valve can be disposed in-line with the supply conduit or the manual pump.